Majority of us by this point of time 'by heart' know what 'by the people, of the people and for the people' means. Exactly. DEMOCRACY. And so, yesterday I finally became a part of this democratic process in India.You see I, for the very first time got my finger inked. The experience was great. I felt empowered. Instead of just criticizing repeatedly about the same old things, its refreshing to exercise the power bestowed by the Constitution .
Since I happen to be doing a postgraduate course from my home state only, I was lucky enough to
exercise my vote. But not many people share my luck. In India, people tend to leave their home towns in search of better academic and job prospects. They are unable to commute back for a day to their home town in order to cast their vote. The reasons differ and these may or may not be rational. The unfortunate part is that majority of this age group Wants to vote but cannot.Why? Just because they are studying or earning their bread and butter in a place within India but not their home state. That is enough to prevent them from voting.
In my own batch at IIMC Jammu, out of 13 people only one was able to vote. Rest of them couldn't since they do not belong to the state. Imagine what difference those 12 votes would have made.This is not just about those 12 votes but there are many such 12-vote stories. Such stories can certainly play a crucial role in deciding the main players of the government.
What I fail to understand is the rationale behind the absence of a flexible system of voting where Indian citizens could avail their right through out length and breadth of the country. Not only would this improve the voting percentage (which is needed also) but subsequently ensure an increase in participation.
Not much can be done to forcibly get a registered voter to the polling station. But I am sure constructive steps can be taken to get the polling station to a willing registered voter. Let's empower each voter irrespective of his/her geographical location and ensure that in the end India, The democracy emerges as the winner.
The democracy in this country is celebrated with much fanfare. Personally, I feel that the real win-win situation is when the competition is tough. When one has to do brainstorming to choose the leader. 
